Magical Mystery Data

By

Tim Annett

Updated May 26, 2006 3:05 p.m. ET

Many Americans are busy loading their cars for a Memorial Day getaway. But tucked away in a new batch of economic data is evidence that the dollars they spend while holidaying won't go as far as they might wish.

The Commerce Department reported that consumer spending, the motor of the U.S. economy, increased 0.6% in April. On the surface, that's a strong number, up a tick from the 0.5% growth in spending seen in March at the tail end of a searing first quarter when the economy expanded at a 5.3% annual rate. But the...